Aviation collections

Below are examples of collections in the Consortium Library’s Archives and Special Collections which relate to aviation in Alaska. This list is not comprehensive. Follow the links to collection descriptions and inventories. You can keyword search all of our collection descriptions and inventories by using the search box available on each of the pages below.

Ted Bank papers; 1882-1980. HMC-0068. Papers and photographs of an explorer and anthropologist who worked in the Aleutian Islands and Japan.

Ted Buszek photographs; undated, 1943-1986. HMC-1209. Photographs of a member of the 404th Bombardment Squadron, who served in the Aleutian Islands during World War II. From 1944 to 1945 Buszek served as a pilot with the 404th Bombardment Squadron on Shemya in the Aleutian Islands.

John J. Cape, Jr. papers; 1941-1942, 1944. HMC-0812. Papers of an 11th Fighter Squadron pilot killed in action near Dutch Harbor. He enlisted in the U. S. Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet at New York, New York, on February 7, 1941. Cape then served with the 11th Fighter Squadron in the Aleutian Islands under Major John S. Chennault.

Cliff Cernick papers; circa 1949-2002. HMC-0607. Research and personal files of an Alaskan aviation historian and journalist. The collection primarily consists of Cliff Cernick’s writing and research files for a variety of book and article projects. Cernick’s papers include subject files of specific pilots in Alaska.

Hakon Christensen film; 1939-1950. HMC-0089. Motion picture film from an Alaskan bush pilot. The collection consists of thirteen reels or 102 minutes of Hakon Christensen’s 16mm silent color motion picture film from his life and work in Alaska. Notable subjects include footage of Hakon Christensen and a military cargo plane flying in a Mount McKinley expedition, led by Henry Bradford Washburn, Jr., onto a glacier; planes landing and taking off from Merrill Field in Anchorage.

Francis and Grace Cogswell papers; 1920-1957. HMC-0744. Papers of U.S. Navy captain and his wife, who commanded a flotilla which aided the USCGS in a survey expedition to chart the Aleutian Islands in 1935. The collection consists of the photograph album of Captain Francis Cogswell, including navy seaplanes and sounding boats used in the survey.

Dorothy and Grenold Collins papers; undated, 1907-2002. HMC-0422. The papers of an Alaskan bush pilot, sportsman, and business owners. During World War II, Collins was a pilot for the Morrison-Knudsen construction firm. Following the war, he formed the Gren Collins Charter Airplane Service and Big Game Guide Service.

Russ Dow papers; 1917-1992. HMC-0396. Papers and photographs of an Alaskan heavy equipment operator and photographer. Included in the collection are photographs and materials relating to pilot Bob Reeve.

Frank C. Fox photographs; 1946-1993. HMC-0708. Photographs of a pilot with the U.S. Air Force who served at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage. The collection consists of the aviation photographs of U. S. Air Force officer and helicopter pilot, Frank C. Fox. The photographs primarily relate to Fox’s U. S. Air Force career flying helicopters in Germany (1953-1956), in the Washington, D.C. area (1957-1962), and Alaska (1962-1966).

Henry K. “Hank” Frese papers; 1942-2003. HMC-0862. The photographs include images of soldiers, aircraft and facilities at Shemya Air Base, as well as those of Attu Island, Japanese bombing targets, aerial subjects, and veterans reunions. The videocassettes are of the Shemya Veterans Reunion in 1991, and the Eleventh Air Force Association and Navy Patwing Four Airdales Reunion in 1995.

Burton J. Good photographs; 1943-1993. HMC-1210. Photographs of a pilot with the 344th and 11th Fighter Squadrons who served in the Aleutian Islands during World War II. Subjects of the photographs include aerial views of locations in the Aleutian Islands; airplanes flying bombing missions.

John F. Lhotka, Jr. papers; 1942-1946. HMC-0928. Papers and photographs of a Chemical Warfare Service officer who served at Fort Richardson and Adak Army Air Field. Subjects of the photographs and negatives include: John Lhotka and fellow soldiers at Fort Richardson, 11th Air Force facilities at Adak Army Airfield (headquarters, chapel, mess, etc.); a group photo of graduates of the Second Special Aviation Course at the Chemical Warfare School; aerial photos of Adak Army Airfield (U.S. Army Air Force Photos).

Thomas J. Merrick World War II papers; 1944-1945. HMC-0902. The collection consists of the World War II era papers and photographs of Patrol Bombing Squadron Forty Three flight crewman John J. Merrick. The collection contains: Merrick’s aviator’s flight log book; two copies of a Patrol Bombing Squadron Forty Three memorandum.

Richard C. Rivett papers; 1943-1945. HMC-0580. Papers of a communications officer in the U.S. Army Air Corps who served in the Aleutians during World War II. The photographs are official U.S. Army Air Forces photographs from Adak. They show a radar receiver and soldiers launching balloons, possibly to test radar equipment.

James H. Sample photographs; undated, 1945. HMC-1204. Photographs of a member of the 404th Bombardment Squadron who served at Shemya Air Base dueing World War II. The collection contains 44 prints depicting airplanes, aerial views of locations in the Aleutians, and scenes of military life on Shemya.

Jack Scavenius papers; 1920-1976. HMC-0491. Papers of a pilot and diplomat in Anchorage. Scavenius served as an Alaskan bush pilot from 1938-1942, and served in the U.S. Army Air Corps from 1942 to 1945. From 1946 to 1950, Scavenius served as the owner and operator of McKinley Airways, in Anchorage.

Tony Schultz papers; 1963-1982. HMC-0218. The collection consists of material relating to R. T. Schultz’s activities as an Alaskan pilot. It includes: his reminiscences on his experiences as a pilot; logs and notes of a North Pole flight by two Cessna airplanes in 1981.

Benjamin B. Talley papers; 1925-2002. HMC-0241. Papers of a U. S. Army Corps of Engineers officer in Alaska and elsewhere. Talley pursued a career as an officer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, receiving his commission in 1926 and supervising Army and Air Corps construction in Alaska from 1940-1943.

Manila D. Talley papers; 1919-1990. HMC-1240. Papers of a pilot who lived in Alaska and elsewhere. This collection consists of materials pertaining to Manila Talley’s career as a pilot, as well as her personal life. The papers include correspondence between Talley and friends and family; travel diaries and other materials; materials relating to Talley’s membership in the Civil Air Patrol; USAF and Air War College correspondence course materials; materials related to pilots’ organizations; and photographs of Talley.

Robert Wickman papers; circa 1944-1945. HMC-0498. Photographs and papers of a B-24 pilot in the 404th Bombardment Group, 11th Air Force, who served in the Aleutians. This collection contains photographs from a scrapbook and the combat itinerary of Captain Robert Wickman.